The Necessity of Perseverance (William Gurnall)

Ephesians 6:13

“Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

THE glorious victory which hovers over the head of believers while in the fight against Satan, and that shall surely crown them in the end, is held forth by the apostle in Ephesians 6:13 in these words, “And having done all, to stand.” 

Heaven is not won with good words and a fair profession; “Having done all.” The doing Christian is the man that shall stand, when the empty boaster of his faith shall fall. The great talkers of religion are often the least doers. His religion is in vain whose profession brings not letters testimonial of a holy life. It is not crying out upon the devil and declaiming against sin in prayer or discourse, but fighting and mortifying it that God looks chiefly upon. 

He that will be Christ’s soldier, must persevere to the end of his life in this war against Satan. Not he that takes the field, but he that keeps the field; not that sets out, but he that holds out in this holy war, deserves the name of a saint. We must stand to our arms, till called off by death. 

We are under a covenant and oath to do this. Formerly soldiers used to take an oath not to flinch from their colors, but faithfully to cleave to their leaders; this they called a military oath; such an oath lies upon every Christian. It is so essential to the being of a saint, that they are described by this in Psalm 50:5, “Gather My saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” When we take upon us the profession of Christ’s name, we list ourselves in His master-roll, and by it promise, we will live and die with Him in opposition with all His enemies. Therefore Christ tells us upon what terms He will enroll us among His disciples: “If any man will be My disciple, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” He will not entertain us till we resign up ourselves freely to His disposal, that there may be no disputing with His commands afterward, but, as one under His authority, go and come at His word.

 Perseverance is necessary, because our enemy perseveres to oppose us. There is no truce in the devil’s heart, no cessation of arms in our enemy’s camp. If an enemy continue to assault a city, and they within cease to resist, it is easy to tell what will follow. The prophet that was sent to Bethel did his errand well, withstood Jeroboam’s temptation, but in his way home was drawn aside by the old prophet, and at last slain by a lion.

 Perseverance is necessary, because the promise of life and glory is settled upon the persevering soul; the crown stands at the goal, he has it that comes to the end of the race. “To him that overcometh, will I give,” not in a particular skirmish, but in the war. “Ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the whole will of God, ye might receive the promise” (Heb 10:36). There is a remarkable accent on that henceforth which Paul mentions in 2 Timothy 4, “I have fought a good fight...henceforth is laid up for me a crown of righteousness.” Why, was it not laid up before? Yes, but having persevered and come near the goal, being within sight of home, ready to die, he takes now surer hold of the promise. Indeed in this sense it is, that a gracious soul is nearer its salvation after every victory than it was before, because he approaches nearer to the end of his race, which is the time promised for the receiving of the promised salvation (Rom 13:11). 

Here we may take up a sad lamentation in respect of the many apostate professors of our days. Never was this spiritual falling-sickness more prevalent: O! how many are sick of it, and not a few fallen asleep by it. These times of war and confusion have not made so many broken merchants as broken p rofessors; is there a congregation that cannot show some who have outlived their profession? Oh, what a sad change! “It had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them” (2 Peter 2:21). Better never to have walked a step toward heaven, than to put such a re p roach upon the ways of God. These are they which God loathes. He that hates putting away, disdains much more to be Himself thus put away. “If any man draw back, My soul shall have no pleasure in him” (Heb 10:38). The apostate is said to tread upon the Son of God (Heb 10:29), as if He were no better than the d i rt under his feet. Well, he shall have treading for treading; God Himself will set His foot upon him; (Psa 119:118) “Thou hast trodden down all them that e rr from Thy statutes.” And who, think you, will be weary soonest? He that is under foot, bears the weight of the whole man upon him. To be under the foot of God, is to lie under the whole weight of God’s wrath. Oh pity and pray for such forlorn souls; they are objects of the one, and subjects of the other; though they are fallen low, yet not into hell; now and then we see a Eutychus raised, that had fallen from such a height.

A soul void of divine armor cannot persevere. What this divine armor is the apostle has shown in the several pieces of it. The sanctifying graces of God ’s Spirit are this armor. One that has not these wrought in him, will never hold out to fight all the battles that are to be fought before victory is to be had. Common gifts of the Spirit, such as illumination, conviction, sudden pangs and flushing heats of affection, may carry out the creature for a while with a goodly appearance of zeal for God, and forwardness in profession; but the strength these afford is soon spent. John’s hearers mentioned in John 5:35, got some light and heat by sitting under his burning ministry; but how long did it last? “Ye were willing for a season to rejoice.” They were very beautiful colors that were drawn on them, but not laid in oil, and therefore soon washed off again. The foolish virgins made as great a blaze with their lamps, and did expect as good a day when Christ should come as the wise virgins; but alas, their lamps are out before He appeared. The stony ground is more forward than the best soil; the seed comes up immediately, as if a crop should soon have been reaped; but a few nipping frosts turn its hue, and the day of harvest proves a day of desperate sorrow. All these instances, and many more in Scripture, evince that nothing short of grace, and a principle of divine life in the soul, will persevere. How forward soever formalists and flighty  professors are to promise themselves hopes of reaching heaven, they will fin d it too long a step for their short-breathed souls to attain. The reasons are:

1. Such want a principle of divine life to draw strength from Christ to persevere in their course. That by which the gracious soul itself perseveres, is the continual supply it receives from Christ; as the arm and foot is kept alive in the body by those vital spirits which they receive from the heart: “I live,” says Paul, “yet not I, but Christ in me”; that is, I live, but at Christ’s cost;—as He holds my soul, so He holds my grace in life. Now the carnal person wanting this union, must needs waste and consume; he has no root to stand on. When Cain sinned, see how he falls farther and farther like a stone down a hill: he never stays till he comes to the bottom of despair: from envying his brother to malice, from malice to murder, from murder to impudent lying, and brazen-faced boldness to God Himself, and from that to despair; so true is that 2 Timothy 3:13, “evil men...shall wax worse and worse.” But now when a saint falls, he rises, because when he falls he has a principle of life to cry out to Christ, and such an interest in Christ as stirs Him up to help: “Lord, save me,” said Peter when he began to sink, and presently Christ’s hand is put forth; He chides him for his unbelief, but helps him.

2. An unregenerate soul has no assurance of the continuance of those common gifts of the Spirit he has; they come on the same terms to such that temporal enjoyments do. A carnal person, when he has his table most sumptuously spread, cannot show any word of promise under God’s hand that he shall be provided for the next meal. God gives these things to the wicked, as we a crust or night’s lodging to a beggar in our barn; it is our bounty; such a one could not sue us for denying the same: so the common gifts of the Spirit, God was not bound to give them, nor to continue them. You have some knowledge of the things of God: you may for all this die without knowledge at last; you are a sinner in chains, but you may be let loose to your lusts as freely  as ever. And how can he persevere, that in one day may from praying fall to cursing; from a whining, complaining Conscience, come to have a seared conscience?

3. Every unregenerate man, when most busy with profession, has those engagements lie upon him, that will necessarily take him off one time or other. One is engaged to the world, and when he come to a good market for that, he goes away and makes it appear which he loves best: “Demas has forsaken us, and embraced this present world.” Another is a slave to his lust: and when this calls him he must go in spite of his profession, conscience, God and all. Herod feared John, and did many things; but love is stronger than fear; his love to Herodias overcomes his fear of John, and makes him cut off at once the head of John, and the hopeful buddings which appeared in the tenderness of his conscience, and begun reformation.

This shows us what is the root of all final apostacy; viz., the want of a change of heart. The apostate does not lose the grace he had, but discovers he never had any; and it is no wonder to hear that he proves a bankrupt, that was worse than nought when he first set up. Many take up their saintship upon trust, trading in the duties of religion with the credit they have gained from others’ opinion of them. They believe themselves to be Christians, because others hope them to be such; and so their great business is, by a zeal in those exercises of religion that lie outmost, to keep up the credit they have abroad, but do not look for grace within, which should maintain them in their profession; and this proves their undoing at last.

Let it therefore make us, in the fear of God, to consider upon what score we take up our profession. Is there that within which bears proportion to our outward zeal? Have we a good foundation? Is not the superstructure topheavy, jetting beyond the weak foundation? They say trees shoot as much in the root under ground as in the branches above, and so does true grace. Oh remember what was the perishing of the seed in stony ground: it lacked root, why so? Because it was stony. Be willing the plow should go deep enough to humble you for sin, and rend your heart from sin. The soul effectually brought out of the love of sin as sin, will never be thorough friends with it again. In a word, be serious to find out the great spring that sets all your wheels on motion in your religious trade. 

The empty professor disappoints others, who, seeing his leaves, expect fruit, but find none; and at last he disappoints himself; he thinks to reach heaven, but shall miss!

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